The Bruise
by vancekennard
Summary: Linneus had always wondered how Xanthe got it. (Teahouse comic fanfiction. Linneus/Original Character.)


**Disclaimer: I don't own any rights to Teahouse. I'm not making a profit off this story.**

What a lovely way to say goodbye – with weak little arms squeezing as hard as they could – which wasn't much, but Xanthe enjoyed the sound Linny made as he strained to pull Xanthe as physically close as possible.

When Linny didn't pull away within an appropriate span of time Xanthe pried the pale arms off his middle. "I have to get back to my studies," he said in feign breathlessness.

"It's my only free day this month," Linny grumbled. "Can't we play a little longer?"

"No, we cannot," Xanthe said sternly.

"Atros, who's your girlfriend?" Asked a boisterous voice from behind Xanthe.

Xanthe whirled around to see Doyle Lansver leaning against the garden tree with a smug look on his face. Doyle's father was a good man, a hard working man. The kind of man who had severely calloused fingers. He was a friend of Xanthe's father and his spoiled bully of a son was nothing like him.

Linny stomped his foot. "I'm not a girl."

"Linny," Xanthe murmured, "go inside."

Linny looked from Xanthe to Doyle. "Why?"

The nasty little blond made kissy noises at him. "She looks like a sweetheart to me."

"Linny, go," Xanthe ordered.

Doyle whistled at Linny as he went. "I can tell she knows how to cover all bases. You know how I know? 'Cause it takes one to know one." He laughed, so pleased with himself. "Does she squeal when you stick it in her?"

"Shut your mouth!" Xanthe roared.

He charged forward and Doyle saw the punch coming, but he didn't have time to block it. Xanthe had only ever punched objects when he'd been angry in the past, Doyle's face felt far more satisfying. Xanthe relished the burning discomfort in his right hand's knuckles. He'd like the soreness less once the adrenaline wore off, but he didn't care.

Doyle didn't bother with wiping his bloody nose before he threw a punch that hit the other boy in the eye. "How cute," he teased, "defending your girl's honor."

"Enough!"

The sound of Atros senior's voice made the boys jump apart.

Mr. Atros stuck his arm out and pointed at the Teahouse. "Your father's waiting for you, Doyle. You are not accustomed to making your elders wait, are you?"

Doyle ducked his head. "No, Mr. Atros."

Mr. Atros whipped a cotton handkerchief out of his pocket. "Take this with you."

Doyle went to him, snatched the handkerchief out of the large, gloved hand, and ran inside.

With five wide strides Mr. Atros crossed the space between them, so he could tower over his son. "What were you thinking?"

Xanthe folded his arms. "He started it."

"You do not let common muck like him bring you down to his level. Is that clear?"

"Crystal clear," Xanthe murmured the overused cliché.

~Several years later~

Although Xanthe was charged with observing the lineup he told Linneus he could not bring himself to watch over the whores that day, not during the first time Linneus would be joining them. Xanthe's stand-in, Murrow the accountant, was on edge that day. Although they'd given local law enforcement a cut of the business since the start of the conversion Murrow still feared the iron fist of the law. He anxiously welcomed every customer as if they were an undercover officer.

By the afternoon the sixth lineup of the day came and Linneus hadn't been picked by a customer yet. A few had shown interest in him, until they realized why he was standing with the men.

The man standing in the main foyer now was handsome. His scruffy brown hair and matching, framed eyes, along with the rest of his face, left something to be desired. But the way his button-up and trousers were fitted revealed the muscles beneath the clothes. He didn't have the build of a man who had spare time for toning workouts, but the build of a man who earned his physique with hard labor.

Linneus was happily surprised when the man made his way down the lineup and halted in front of him, his eyes fixated on the pink hair. "I'll have this one."

Linneus tried not to sniffle at the stench of the man's cheap cologne.

"Are you certain?" Murrow said skittishly. "Linneus is a man, you know. I thought you mentioned looking for a pretty lady at the door."

"I did, but he'll do." He touched a hand to his spectacles. "If I don't like what I see under them fancy clothes I can always take these off."

Murrow scratched his chin. "Carry on then."

The man looked at Linneus expectantly and held out his hand. Linneus took it, his own fingers feeling oddly rigid. He had never climbed the stairs so quickly. Before he knew it he and the buyer of his affection had reached the top step. "This way," Linneus said, leading the stranger down one hall, then another, before they reached his door.

Linneus passed through the tall frame first. The room was falling into shadows. "Lights or candles?"

"Candles." The man shut the door. "Should I lock it?"

"Please."

Wings flapped in his belly when Linneus heard the lock click into place. "What would you like me to call you?"

"Dee's fine."

"Dee. I like it. Would you like a drink, Dee?"

He swatted the air. "No thank you, nothing on the side for me. I'm saving all my money for you."

Finished lighting the last candle on the bedside table, Linneus turned and gave him a tight smile. "You're sweet."

Dee remained near the door and started unfastening the buttons on his shirt. "You don't remember me? I've been here before."

Linneus sat on his bed and fiddled with the beaded bracelet that was making his wrist cool, causing him to recognize just how hot nerves were making the rest of his body. "There's no way we've crossed passed. This is my first day. They would have made a big production of it, if I was a virgin."

Dee rolled his eyes at him, as if the story was crafted. "Atros has had you here for years and you're telling me he never whored you out 'til now?"

Linneus hugged himself. "I don't want to talk about Atros and you, Mr. Dee, have me confused with someone else."

Dee came closer, sliding off his shirt and laying it at the foot of the bed. "No, it was you. My father did repairs here, and he'd take me with him, and sometimes I saw you with the owner's son. Once when I was in a rotten mood I cat called to you. Xanthe and I came to blows over it, right before he went off to that posh school."

Interest lit up inside Linneus as he remembered the rude boy in the garden, teasing him for being girlish. "That was you?"

Dee sat beside him. "I hated him. You were so beautiful. You chased him like a puppy, and he kept turning you away."

Linneus blanched, startled by the stark honesty. "We were children."

"He's a man now," Dee said, his tone somewhat patronizing. "And look where he's got you. Turning tricks to fatten his family's wallet."

Linneus fought the impulse to scoot away from him. "I refuse to discuss this topic any further."

This wasn't what Linneus wanted. He wanted a stranger to do this. To come, then go without ever thinking of him again. He wanted the memory of his first night as a whore to be wrapped in the unfamiliar, so one day his mind would go back to the memory and find many pieces of it deemed irrelevant, therefore discarded, obstructing the view, like when the buildings lining the street outside were hard to see through the window during misty downpours.

Dee tried to say something else and Linneus cupped his face and kissed him, trusting it would shut him up. Dee groaned. Emboldened, Linneus's long, slender fingers undid his button-fly and crept inside his trousers. There was no underwear to slow them down. Dee pulled his mouth away and bit his lips.

"Use your mouth," he said hoarsely.

Linneus bent over and gently pulled out the hard-on. It wasn't very long, but it was thick and circumcised. Linneus swirled his tongue around the mushroom head and Dee gripped the back of his neck. The flesh didn't taste too bad and the pre-cum was delicious. Linneus eagerly swallowed it and the taste woke his own cock.

"Can we move?" he asked, as he came up for air.

"Yeah," Dee breathed. "Where do you want me?"

Linneus undid his own fly, pulled out his prick, crawled to the headboard, and sat his back against it. "Here."

Dee followed, coming to stand on his knees, over Linneus's lap, with his prick in the pink haired beauty's face. He braced his hands on the headboard.

Linneus kissed Dee's abdomen and lazily ran his hands up the man's thighs. "Want me to suck on your nuts?"

Dee shivered. "We can save that for next time."

Linneus shrugged a shoulder, clutched Dee's hips, and fought his gag reflex as he took the prick down his throat. Dee screamed and slightly grinded his hips, but he held back from thrusting into the wet, tight warmth. Once Linneus was convinced Dee wasn't going to get out of control he let go of one hip and started stroking his throbbing erection.

Linneus came first and the moans made his throat vibrate, which took Dee over the edge.

"Holy, shit, Linny," Dee panted, as he sunk down beside Linneus.

Linneus frowned at the use of his nickname and Dee sighed.

"You won't see me again," he said. "So, I'll savor tonight."

Linneus bit his lips together and allowed Dee to snuggle up to him.

"You won't forget me though," he whispered, before his lids rolled shut.

Linneus couldn't keep the tears at bay. He'd always wondered how Xanthe got the bruise, and now he would never forget why.


End file.
